George m



v (No Model.) 4 v G. M. HUBBARD.

, BUCKLE GUARD. a No. 421,716. Patented Feb. 18. 1890.

'eEoEeE M. HUBBARD, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR To W.-

' the guard applied; Fig. 5, a longitudinal cen- NITED STATES,

ATEN-T OFFI E.

AND E. T. FITCH, OF SAME PLACE.

GUARD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 421,716, dated February. 18, 1890.

Application filed December 9, 1889.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE M. HUBBARD, of New Haven, in the county of New .Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new Improvementin Buckle-Guards; and I do here by declare the following, when taken in connection with accompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon, to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which said drawings constitute part of this specification, and represent, in

Figure 1, a top view of the guard complete; F g. 2, a side View of the same; Fig. 3, an end view looking. from the forward end; Fig. 4, a top or face view of the buckle and straps with tral section of the same; Fig. 6, a sectional view lllustratin g the application of the guard; Fig. 7 an end view, and Fig. 8a top view, of a guard as made from sheet metal; Fig. 9, a perspective view of the guard as made from wire.

This invention relates to an improvement 1n the device which is combined with a common swing-tongue harness-buckle, the device belng designed to cover and guard the exposed end of the tongue as it rests upon its bear ng-bar, the invention being useful more partlcularly for buckles used to support the breeching and where the points of the tongue are exposed or liable to be entangled with the horses tail, the object of the invention being a cheap and simple construction which may be readily applied, and when applied be securely retained in its position and it consists in the construction as hereinafter described, and particularly recited in the claim.

A represents the standing-strap, to which a common buckle B is applied, the buckle provided with a swing-tongue O in the usual manner, adapted to rest upon the bearing-bar D of the buckle-frame. Through this buckle the adjustable strap E is run in the usual manner.

The guard consists of a loop a, through which the adj listing-strap E may readily pass. From the upper or outer side of thisloop the shield 7) extends forward. This shield is of Serial No. 338,003. (No model.)

hook shape, its forward end turned downward,

and through that turned-down end an openjusting-strap E, as seen in Fig. 6. Then, after the tongue is inserted through its hole in the adjusting-strap the hooked end is set onto the tongue, the opening cl permitting this to be done, and then the tongue drawn to its bearing, as seen in Fig. 5. The hooked end of the guard engages with the bearing-bar of the tongue, and so that so long as the tongue rests upon that bar the guard is interlocked with the buckle so as to prevent its separation, and as there is usually strain upon the adjustingstrap to prevent accidental displacement of the buckle-tongue the guard becomes substantially permanently attached to the buckle until a readjustment is desired.

This construction of guard is very simple. It is of a shape to permit it to be cast; or it may be readily made from sheet metal, as seen in Figs. 7 and 8, a blank being cut to shape, and then the loop and hook formed by bending, or it may be made from wire, as seen in Fig. 9, the ends of the wire preferably meeting in the loop. The ends may be left disconnected, or may be soldered or brazed together.

It will be understood from the foregoing that I do not claim, broadly, a guard to protect the tongue of a buckle, the said guard being adapted to embrace the strap which is run through the buckle, the essential feature of my invention being the construction of the guard with the turned-in end having an opening through it through which the buckletongue may pass, while the said turned-in end engages the tongue-bearing bar as a hook to interlock the guard directly with the buckle,

I claim-- The herein-described buckleguard, consisting of the loop a, adapted to set on over the adjustable strap and having a shield b the tongue and tongue-bearing bar of the projecting from its upper 01' outside bar, the buckle.

end of the shield turned inward and con- GEORGF M HUBBARD structed with an opening (1 through it cor- 5 responding to the tongue of 'the buckle, sub- XVitnesses:

stanoially as described, and so that the said FRED C. EARLE,

turned-in end of the guard may engage both LILLIAN D. KELSEY. 

